RIP

Whitney Rydbeck -- an actor known for his appearance in a 'Friday the 13th' film and several major sitcoms -- has died ... according to his longtime friend.

The actor passed away early last week according to his friend, director Tommy McLoughlin, who just posted the news a couple days ago ... saying the world lost a truly funny comedian and kind-hearted friend.

The Hollywood Reporter spoke with McCloughlin as well ... who told them he died from prostate cancer complications while in hospice care in Chatsworth, California.

Brazilian musician Ayres Sasaki died this week after he was electrocuted during a live show ... when he hugged a soaking-wet fan onstage.

The incident -- which happened at the Solar Hotel, in Salinopolis, Brazil during Sasaki's concert -- occurred when the singer hugged the wet fan, and according to The Sun, the contact triggered a nearby cable to jolt, causing the fatal electric shock.

It's still unclear as to why the fan was wet, but police in Salinopolis are investigating the incident.

Shelia Jackson Lee – the Texas congresswoman who spent three decades in office fighting for Black rights – has died.

Her family issued a statement saying Lee passed away Friday, but no cause of death was given. They said while they were grieving for their loss, they had much gratitude for Lee's life.

In June, Lee announced she was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, informing her constituents she would occasionally be absent from Congress while getting medical treatment.

An Indianapolis man is dead after another driver shot him at point-blank range during a road rage incident caught on video -- and cops have released the man who fired the fatal shots.

In the video, a man rushes to the driver's side of a large white truck ... with what appears to be a gun in his hand, and he's screaming at the other motorist while punching his door during the Tuesday incident.

Watch closely ... because when he's rushing up to the car, the gun's in his right hand -- but, when he reaches the door he switches it to his left before raising his arm and pointing.

Richard Simmons' death certificate sheds no further light on the mystery surrounding his death ... but does provide some interesting details on his final resting place.

In the document obtained by TMZ ... Richard's manner of death is not listed -- instead, it notes the manner of death is still pending an investigation. This explains why there is still no cause of death to report.

However, it appears the fitness guru -- who is actually referred to as a "Health Motivator" on the cert -- has already been laid to rest a week after his death. Per the doc, Richard was buried here in L.A. at the Pierce Brothers Westwood Village Memorial Park and Mortuary.

Christina Sandera -- the longtime girlfriend of Hollywood legend Clint Eastwood -- has died ... according to the actor-director.

The Western star shared the sad news in a statement, where he confirmed his companion's death Thursday evening ... but provided no further details on the circumstances of her passing.

He says ... "Christina was a lovely, caring woman, and I will miss her very much."

Lou Dobbs -- a controversial conservative commentator who spent decades at CNN -- has died ... TMZ has confirmed.

The longtime conservative political pundit -- who's worked on both FOX and CNN -- passed away Thursday ... this according to his wife, Debi. The exact details of his passing weren't immediately revealed ... but the news was first broken by none other than Donald Trump.

The 45th President of the United States made the announcement on Truth Social first ... calling LD a friend and incredible journalist who really understood the world.

Pop Smoke's mother Audrey Jackson isn't entertained by her son's killer making the rounds on the interview circuit and just may pursue legal action to prevent it from happening again!!!

TMZ Hip Hop got Ms. Jackson in NYC and the anti-gun violence advocate was all fired up for this weekend's celebration to commemorate Pop's 25th birthday ... food, games, a basketball event and a full-blown parade will cap off the week's festivities.

We broke the story in 2020 ... the platinum-selling "Dior" rapper was shot and killed at a Hollywood Hills residence once owned by "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" star Teddi Mellencamp ... and posthumously became a hip hop legend with his music earning rave reviews in death.

Shannen Doherty was determined to finalize her divorce before she died, but she didn't quite make it ... nevertheless, a family law judge gave her a unique, posthumous assist.

As you know, Shannen died Saturday after a multi-year struggle with cancer. Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ, those closest to her knew she would not make it past the weekend.

Shannen, we're told, wanted an official divorce from Kurt Iswarienko before she passed. They were married in 2011 and the split was bitter.

Shannen Doherty appeared to make peace with longtime frenemy Alyssa Milano before her death ... as she doled out surprising praise for the actress in her final days.

The actress recorded an episode for the "House of Halliwell" podcast with "Charmed" costar Holly Marie Combs, which was released July 14, the day after Shannen died. During the episode, Shannen reflected on actress Lori Rom originally playing Phoebe Halliwell in an unaired "Charmed" pilot -- with the role later going to Alyssa.

Despite their decades-long feud, Shannen praised Alyssa for bringing some much-needed levity to the supernatural drama.

Here's Johnny Depp and Andrea Bocelli performing together over in Italy ... and the duo is honoring the late Jeff Beck in the process.

TMZ obtained video from Andrea's concert Wednesday night in Italy ... and the legendary singer was doing his thing onstage alongside Johnny, who is playing guitar -- which actually carries some significance.

Johnny and Andrea are performing "En Aranjuez Con Tu Amor" ... a song we're told they originally played together back in 2020, when JD and his good pal Jeff visited Andrea.

Photos from the aftermath of Fandango founder J. Michael Cline's suicide show his body being loaded up by the New York City Medical Examiner ... and it's a grisly scene.

TMZ obtained a bunch of photos from the Big Apple hotel where Cline jumped to his death Tuesday ... and the official response includes at least one police officer and a couple members from the ME's office.

As you can see, Cline's corpse is covered in a black body bag as it's being loaded into the back of a ME van ... and there was another car from the ME's forensic operations squad on the ground as well.

J. Michael Cline -- founder of movie ticketing app Fandango -- has died after leaping from a building in New York City ... TMZ has confirmed.

Law enforcement sources tell us ... the entrepreneur jumped from the 20th floor of The Kimberly Hotel in Manhattan, landing in a third-floor courtyard early Tuesday morning.

We're told he left a suicide note in the room that reads, "So sorry. I can’t explain the pain of f****** up this much. I love you all." Our sources say he then went out onto the balcony and jumped.

The man convicted of killing rapper Slim 400 was just sentenced to several decades behind bars.

On Wednesday, L.A. native Michael Terry was sentenced to 32 years in prison on Monday after pleading guilty to voluntary manslaughter for Slim's December 2021 shooting death.

Terry previously admitted to pulling up to a residence in Inglewood where Terry gunned down Slim in his own front yard.

1:54 PM PT -- Sources with direct knowledge tell TMZ ... the shooting Tuesday was completely unrelated to the RNC -- and the reason Secret Service was on the ground was because agents happened to be in the area and simply rendered aid.

A homeless man was reportedly shot and killed not far from the Republican National Convention -- and while it doesn't seem tied to Donald Trump ... cops were out in force.

The shooting took place Tuesday in Milwaukee, about a mile outside the Fiserv Forum -- where there's a wide perimeter of security ... and where a police officer from Columbus, OH opened fire on a man -- who, according to eyewitnesses, was a vagrant in town.

11:38 AM PT -- Kobe's wife, Vanessa Bryant, just addressed Joe's passing ... sharing her condolences and reflecting on his relationship with the family.

"We hoped things would've been different," Vanessa said on Tuesday. "Although the times we spent together were few, he was always sweet and nice to be around."

"Kobe loved him very much."